National Park Service acting director David Vela on Wednesday discussed the complexities of dealing with racism associated with parks as the movement to remove Confederate monuments gains momentum nationwide. Continue reading “NPS Acting Director Offers Nuanced Take On Decision To Keep Confederate Monuments”
Where Things Stand: Here Are The Admin Officials Who Don’t Want To Give You Daily COVID Info
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, senior adviser Jared Kushner, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and counselor to the president Hope Hicks, for starters.
Trump Condemns Budget Cuts to NYPD, Calls ‘Black Lives Matter’ A ‘Symbol Of Hate’
President Trump criticized New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Wednesday for the second-term mayor’s decision to cut roughly $1 billion from the city’s police department budget.
In a morning Twitter rant, Trump tossed red meat to blue-uniform sympathizers and white supremacists, saying the move to cut the NYPD budget was made worse by an unrelated decision to paint the words “Black Lives Matter” along Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, which he said would denigrate “this luxury Avenue.”
….horrible BLM chant, “Pigs In A Blanket, Fry ‘Em Like Bacon”. Maybe our GREAT Police, who have been neutralized and scorned by a mayor who hates & disrespects them, won’t let this symbol of hate be affixed to New York’s greatest street. Spend this money fighting crime instead!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2020
In tweets, the President called the installation of a street painting reading “Black Lives Matter” — a phrase associated with a movement of the same name — “a symbol of hate.” The BLM movement has condemned racism and police violence in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis over Memorial Day weekend. Trump also suggested that the sign reflected the mayor’s disrespect for the police.
The move to pit police against a movement for racial justice is the latest in the president’s continued attempts at putting his reelection at the center of a culture war that demonizes the nation’s reckoning with racial inequality.
Ironically, de Blasio was the subject of faltering enthusiasm last month among former supporters who criticized his response to anti-racism protests which yielded many instances of police violence against largely peaceful demonstrators.
In a press conference on Tuesday, the mayor called the trimming of one-sixth of the NYPD’s $6 billion budget a “balancing act.” It will involve the cancellations of plans to hire roughly 1,160 officers in July. It will also shift officers away from school safety and away from policing illegal vendors and homeless people on the street.
In spite of the cuts, the New York Times reported that a fall class of officers is still expected to begin training in October. That fact has upset some lawmakers who have noted that a hiring freeze by the city for some others — including teachers — will remain in place for the next year.
“Defunding police means defunding police,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said in a statement on Monday, criticizing the mayor for using “budget tricks” and “funny math” that moves police officers from one city budget to the next.
The mayor told MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough in an interview on Wednesday that the “Black Lives Matter” sign could help the President, who just days ago retweeted a video that included a man crying “white power,” grasp a message “that he still doesn’t understand.”
“Maybe seeing it outside of his doorstep will help him get the point,” de Blasio said.
Mulvaney Says Trump ‘Certainly Could’ Urge The Public To Wear Masks
Former acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney on Wednesday joined growing calls from Republicans to wear masks despite President Trump’s reluctance to do so as coronavirus cases surge in several states. Continue reading “Mulvaney Says Trump ‘Certainly Could’ Urge The Public To Wear Masks”
NYC Delays Return Of Indoor Dining As COVID Cases Surge Across The Country
NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday that he was delaying the planned resumption of indoor dining at restaurants in the city out of fear it would cause a spike in coronavirus infections.
The mayor, a Democrat, said he was concerned that if the city welcomed diners back into the enclosed spaces of its restaurants, it might experience the same surge in illness now being seen in other states.
Continue reading “NYC Delays Return Of Indoor Dining As COVID Cases Surge Across The Country”
Trump Falsely Accuses Biden Of Pre-Screening Reporter Questions
President Trump falsely accused Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden of previewing questions before a press conference on Tuesday where the former vice president sharply rebuked Trump’s mishandling of the coronavirus crisis.
In a tweets late Tuesday and early Wednesday, the President claimed Biden had been briefed on the questions ahead of the Delaware news conference and “read the answers from a teleprompter.”
Biden was asked questions at his so-called Press Conference yesterday where he read the answers from a teleprompter. That means he was given the questions, just like Crooked Hillary. Never have seen this before!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2020
The President has long complained about the media’s coverage of him compared with his opponent. But two reporters who attended the event told The Daily Beast that the campaign had not pre-screened questions. When asked about the alleged pre-screening a Biden adviser called the accusation “laughable,” according to the news website.
During the press conference, the former vice president faced questions on a broad range of issues, including his stance on Trump’s handling of an intelligence finding about a Russian bounty plot that potentially cost the lives of American and coalition troops in Afghanistan.
Biden also addressed questions from the right-leaning network Fox News about his mental fitness. Suspicion and questions about Trump’s own mental acuity have often been tossed at the President, whose town hall last week in Wisconsin saw the unintelligible, stream-of-consciousness-style of response to questions about his second term goals.
Fox News Fires Ed Henry After Sexual Misconduct Claim
NEW YORK (AP) — Fox News on Wednesday fired daytime news anchor Ed Henry after he was charged with sexual misconduct in the workplace.
The network said it had received a complaint on June 25 from an attorney about the misconduct. An outside investigator was hired and, based on the results of that probe, Fox fired Henry.
Continue reading “Fox News Fires Ed Henry After Sexual Misconduct Claim”
Oklahoma Voters Narrowly Approve Medicaid Expansion
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma voters narrowly decided on Tuesday to expand Medicaid health insurance to tens of thousands low-income residents, becoming the first state to amend its Constitution to do so.
With 100% of precincts reporting unofficial results, State Question 802 passed by less than 1 percentage point. The question fared well in metropolitan areas, including Oklahoma City and Tulsa, but was overwhelmingly opposed in rural counties.
Continue reading “Oklahoma Voters Narrowly Approve Medicaid Expansion”
Hickenlooper Defeats Romanoff In Colorado Democratic Senate Primary
Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper won the Democratic nomination Tuesday defeating a further left opponent to face Republican Sen. Cory Gardner in November.
Hickenlooper defeated former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, leading him, 59 percent to 41 percent, when The Associated Press called the race within just a half-hour of polls closing.
Hickenlooper’s relatively easy win over Romanoff was the second victory by a centrist Democrat in a Senate primary Tuesday, after a late vote count from last week’s Kentucky Senate primary named Amy McGrath a winner of the Democratic nomination over State Rep. Charles Booker.
Senate Democrats aiming to gain three seats in November and win control of the Senate if they win the White House recruited Hickenlooper to take on Gardner when his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination failed last summer. His opponent’s Senate seat is widely seen as the most vulnerable for Republicans in the Senate.
Romanoff who is a former moderate, campaigned as a populist and backed both a Green New Deal and single-payer health care. The former House Speaker lagged significantly, however, to moderate favorite Hickenlooper’s immense fundraising support and goodwill among voters after two terms as governor.
“I’ve never lost an election in this state and I don’t intend to lose this one,” Hickenlooper said ahead of his win on Tuesday night.
The Democratic nominee is expected to focus his attack on Gardner in campaigns leading up to November on his alignment with Trump, AP reported.
No Republican has won a statewide election in Colorado since 2014, when Gardner won by less than two percentage points in what was then considered a strong year for Republicans. Hickenlooper was reelected as governor that year by a wider margin.
Trump Vows To Veto Defense Bill If It Includes Provision To Remove Confederate Names From Military Bases
President Trump vowed late Tuesday that he would veto this year’s proposed $740 billion annual defense bill if an amendment is included that would require the renaming of bases named after Confederate military leaders.
The pledge to veto the amendment came in a late night tweet reaffirming Trump’s earlier claim to “not even consider the renaming” of military bases as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.
The president mocked Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) who sponsored the amendment calling her “Pocahontas” in a late night tweet that condemned the amendment which would require the renaming of 10 bases named after Confederate generals and the removal of Confederate likenesses, symbols and paraphernalia from defense facilities across the country within three years..
I will Veto the Defense Authorization Bill if the Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren (of all people!) Amendment, which will lead to the renaming (plus other bad things!) of Fort Bragg, Fort Robert E. Lee, and many other Military Bases from which we won Two World Wars, is in the Bill!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2020
The amendment was approved in June by the Republican-led Senate Armed Services Committee, and represents for some a litmus test of the country’s sentiment toward adopting an anti-racist posture at a time when nationwide protests over racial injustice and police violence continue in the wake of the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd in May.
Last month, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led initiatives to remove statues and paintings of Confederate leaders and slave owners from around the Capitol. Those moves which took place in the days leading up to Juneteenth, jolted the Senate into debate as they discussed the provision to make additional efforts at removing the symbols from military facilities as proposed by Warren’s measure in the NDAA.
The president’s pledge also came hours after Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) signed a bill to remove the Confederate battle emblem from the state’s flag.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) criticizing Trump’s previous suggestion that he would veto a bill that carried a renaming requirement for military bases dared the president on Tuesday to challenge the bill.
“I dare President Trump to veto the bill over Confederate-base naming,” Schumer told reporters during a news conference. “It’s in the bill. It has bipartisan support. It will stay in the bill.”
Removing the amendment from this year’s NDAA is unlikely unless Trump vetoes the entire bill as opponents of the amendment are not expected to achieve anywhere close to the 60 votes needed to remove the renaming requirement from the bill.